


A Monster in the Orphanage

by queenditto



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Animal Death, Blood and Gore, Canon Compliant, Gen, Minor Character Death, Not Happy, Orphanage, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:33:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25161679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenditto/pseuds/queenditto
Summary: Who were Amy Benson and Dennis Bishop? What exactly happened up in those caves with Tom Riddle? A canon compliant take on Tom Riddle's days at the orphanage from the perspective of Amy Benson.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	A Monster in the Orphanage

**Author's Note:**

> I'm open to constructive criticism and (nicely worded) critique, especially of the grammar variety. I've done my best to capture the 1930's feel and not make any major spelling and grammar mistakes, however I don't have a beta and there's only so many times I can read through this. I hope you "enjoy". This is a rather depressing fic so it's sort of a different kind of enjoyment.

That morning, the day everything changed, Amy Benson was wearing her favourite dress. It was a bright yellow smock that flared out just right when she would spin around. Her daddy would often remind her that it wasn’t very ladylike of her to twirl like that but it hardly stopped her. Not wanting to upset her daddy, Amy would save it for when nobody was looking, usually in the kitchen as she made breakfast before he woke up.

It was just the two of them and the absence of her mummy was felt even a year after she went to sleep. Her daddy would read the newspaper – some of the words she could piece together now – and would be so absorbed in the articles that he would forget to eat his breakfast unless Amy nudged him to hurry along. She didn’t want to be late yet again to primary.

Amy often thought that having a car would make their mornings a lot easier but her daddy was steadfast against the idea. He often lamented the popularity of the automobile, which spooked the horses and caused awful pollution in the air. Amy thought that he was being rather silly about the whole thing, however she liked her walks with her daddy so she didn’t say that out loud.

The road was clear to cross but midway through Amy stopped. She could feel her father’s impatient tugs on her sleeve but she was distracted by a carriage on the other side of the street.

“Look Daddy, there’s a horse!” She yelled out, forgetting her manners for a moment. Her father smiled for the first time this morning. They both watched as a regal mare pulled up across the road, carrying a couple in the seats. They looked very much in love.

She could see that misty-eyed look in her father’s eyes and felt a bit sad. Before mummy got sick, they would often leave Amy with a babysitter for date nights. Much of the time they would go out to the cinema or to dinner, but on their anniversary they went to experience the London sights on horse and buggy.

Maybe one day she could go on a horse and buggy ride too, or she could be a wizard. If she were a wizard, she could ride a unicorn and cast really cool spells. She wouldn't want to be a witch though, they were awfully mean. Her mind continued to wander, her daddy tugging her sleeve to go, but she was too distracted.

“Look out!” Somebody screamed and her daydreamed crashed to a halt as they both spun towards a speeding car coming their way. Amy stood there, frozen in fright as seconds felt like minutes. She heard the squeal of the brakes being applied but it wouldn’t stop. She was roughly shoved, falling backward. Her school satchel flung into the windshield of the car, causing the glass to crack. She cried out in surprise as she felt a warm liquid splatter on her face, and she went to wipe it off only to be startled at the deep red that coated her hands.

She looked down and she saw her daddy lying there, mangled underneath the carriage of the car. She didn’t know what to feel or how to process what she was seeing. Amy rushed over to his side as somebody else on the pavement screamed. While he saved her life by pushing her out of the way, her father was unable to protect her from the gruesome sight in front of her. People were starting to gather around, but her eyes were only on him. Seconds passed as her mind struggled to process something so gory and violent. Her father looked blankly up at the sky, letting out a few gurgled breaths as his body struggled to survive such carnage.

She could feel somebody trying to pull her away as he stopped breathing, his eyes wide open with no light behind them. Amy's vision darkened and it wasn’t long before she went completely limp. A pair of unfamiliar hands caught her as she faded into unconsciousness.

xxx

A few days later, Amy found herself at Wool’s Orphanage. She had no relatives who could take her in, or at least none that came forward to claim her. She had packed up as much of her belongings as she could in a large trunk, though many things she unfortunately had to leave behind.

Amy frowned as they drove up to the orphanage. It was a dreary gray building that clearly had seen better days. The paint was peeling off the soot covered shutters and nothing had an ounce of colour, not even the other children. She noted unhappily the grey tunics that all the boys and girls wore. It looked like she wouldn’t be able to wear her dresses anymore.

Amy forced herself to smile the best she could when she got out of the car. She would be brave; her daddy would want her to keep her head up and stay strong. She felt like she had cried all her tears out already the past few days and the not even seven-year-old felt an emptiness that she didn’t quite know what to do with. So she kept her almost grimace like smile on her face. The other children looked at her as though she was mad to look happy coming to such a place. An older woman approached the car, resting her hand on her shoulder.

“Miss Benson?” The lady looked extremely anxious – her hands trembled slightly and there was a frown that seemed etched into her face – but she didn’t look unkind. “Welcome to Wool’s Orphanage. My name is Mrs. Cole.” Amy curtsied in greeting like her daddy had taught her to. “What a polite girl! I’m so terribly sorry for your loss, but we will do our best here to make you feel right at home.” Even Mrs. Cole didn’t seem to believe what she was saying, and she let out a nervous jitter.

“Why don’t one of the other girls show you around while Mrs. Cole and I go over your paperwork?” The social worker accompanying her suggested. A teenaged girl seemed to appear out of nowhere, as though she were listening for her cue. Her face was covered in rebellious spots, barely covered by the heavy powder all over her face. She looked over at Amy with a small smile.

“Hello Amy, my name is Marsha,” the teen said as she pulled on Amy's sleeve. The adults walked towards Mrs. Cole’s office, the social worker either not noticing or uncaring of Mrs. Cole’s unsteady gait so early in the afternoon.

“This is the courtyard. Right now it’s playtime so everybody is out enjoying the lovely weather.” Marsha said briskly, Amy struggling to stay in pace with the older girl. “Over there are some girls your age, little Edith and Mary.” Amy glanced briefly at them but her eyes focused on the other side of the courtyard.

“Who’s that?” Amy asked. She saw a dark-haired boy who looked slightly older than her standing alone in the corner. A small frown was on his face as he relaxed against the chain-link fence, watching as the other children were having fun. He looked awfully lonely.

“That’s Tom. He’s been here since he was born pretty much,” Marsha answered. Amy frowned, she couldn’t imagine never having any parents. “It’s best to leave him be, he’s a bit of a loner.”

“Weird things happen around him when he gets mad, he’s a freak!” A scrawny boy rushed over to chime in. Marsha shook her finger at the youngster, Amy guessed it wasn’t the first time she had lectured him.

“None of that Dennis.” Marsha didn’t seem to actually say anything against what Dennis had said and Amy wondered what the mysterious boy had done to earn such a reputation. She dutifully walked away but was lost in thought for the rest of the tour of the orphanage. Amy wondered if she could befriend Tom. Perhaps he was just lonely and needed a new face to give him a chance.

xxx

That thought faded rather quickly as Tom rebuked her enthusiastic introduction. She wanted to try again but he started to avoid her whenever he saw her. There were plenty of other people to befriend anyway and Dennis Bishop was fast becoming her best friend at Wool’s Orphanage. They roomed two rooms apart and Amy enjoyed the rather excitable young boy’s company. He would make her laugh so hard that she thought she would wet herself. After the first few days, they were hardly ever seen without the other.

The duo dealt with some teasing of course, especially from a larger boy named Billy. It was lighthearted enough that Amy was able to shrug it off, her daddy always said when a boy was being mean it was because he liked her. And it wasn’t like he was always mean, she especially liked it when he brought out his bunny Hoppy out from his cage for all of them to play with.

Soon enough Amy forgot about her interest in the reclusive Tom Riddle; she hardly ever saw the boy and it was easy to dismiss him enough when there was good fun to be had elsewhere. Really, she just tried to keep busy in general. Life was really different at the orphanage and she found herself growing up a lot faster then before the accident. She didn’t give much thought to anything remotely distressing if she could, otherwise the sadness that crept into her dreams would invade her day to day life too.

Amy really didn’t notice Tom much at all in those first few months. It was only after a few months after she first arrived at the orphanage when she witnessed an incident between him and Billy. She was playing jacks with Dennis when she saw that Billy was bringing out Hoppy yet again. Amy was tempted to join the growing number of people surrounding them but she was winning and she never won at jacks.

Suddenly she noticed Tom approaching the crowd, and she rolled her eyes as many of the other kids squealed in fright. Edith, a rather timid girl who was terrified of literally everything actually started to run away. He was a bit weird, sure, but he was just a kid like themselves. Edith tripped on the asphalt and everybody stared as Tom started to laugh. It was a harsh sound that contrasted his neutral expression.

“What you laughin’ at?” Billy said, the word you emphasized so much that it sounded much more like a choo. He clutched Hoppy protectively as Edith’s friend Mary rushed over to her side and comforted the crying girl. Tom turned silent, but the laughter remained in the air.

“My mistake, that wasn’t funny after all.” Tom’s voice was a lot quieter then Billy’s boisterous tone but somehow it reached across the courtyard all the same. It also had a posh lilt to it, as if he had been raised in a manor instead of the run-down orphanage.

“Why aren’t you hiding out in your little corner like you always do?” Billy asked, his eyes having a wary quality to them as he held Hoppy closer to his chest. Tom shrugged with an elegant sort of motion that looked unnatural on an eight-year-old boy.

“Let me pet the rabbit.” There was a power behind his words that made Amy shudder. Their game of jacks was clearly forgotten as she and Dennis along with everybody else on the grounds realized that this was no mere request to see Billy’s pet. The two boys stood there for several long seconds, clearly sizing each other up. Billy puffed himself up, clearly thinking himself superior to the smaller boy.

“Nah,” Billy drawled. “Hoppy doesn’t like you and I don’t neither.” Billy crossed his arms in a protective stance, his chubby fingers clutched in a tight fist. Amy could see Tom’s hands clench slightly before letting out a tight shrug.

“It’s a rabbit, it doesn’t have feelings.” Many of the kids including Amy gasped, what a horrible thing to say! The whole courtyard was watching, even the group of toddlers over by the rusting swing set were quiet, watching with a weariness beyond their years.

“That so? No way I’d let Hoppy touch a freak like you.” Amy couldn’t quite identify the flicker of emotion Tom felt at the word freak but it was quickly replaced by his anger.

“I didn’t want to touch your dirty creature anyway.” Tom turned around with a scowl on his face, ignoring the uneasy chattering of the other students as he walked away. He glowered as he refused to look away from Billy and Hoppy, the rabbit trying to wiggle himself away from the fierce grasp of his owner.

She and Dennis went back to playing jacks, but Amy felt uneasy about the whole thing. Tom didn’t seem the type to let things go, not without retribution.

xxx

The next morning Amy woke up to the sound of a high-pitched scream. For a moment she thought back to the day her father died and how the people around them had screamed. She closed her eyes and willed the gathering tears to go away. It was probably just one of the younger kids scared of the critters that often found their way into the orphanage. She shifted her threadbare pillow to block out the sound and try to fall back asleep, but the screaming didn’t stop. Amy heard somebody else yell out in fright. She threw her blankets to the ground and rushed of the room. Heart thumping in her chest, Amy briefly noted that she was still wearing her nightie as she ran down the hall and outside to the courtyard.

At first, she didn’t know what she was looking at. There was a white blurry figure hanging off the rafters on the roof but she was too far away to see what it was. She saw Dennis in the edge of the crowd and she rushed over to him, noticing that his face was devoid of any colour. He grabbed Amy’s hand and pointed up at the object in the air. His eyes were filled with terror as he said one word.

“Hoppy.” Her eyes focused on the sight and Amy felt sick as she finally saw the blur for what it was. Tears ran down her face as she saw the small bunny ears hanging upside down, his eyes gouged out into two bloody holes. The dead rabbit was hanging limply off the rafter, hanging on one foot by a long piece of rope. There was a red splotch at Hoppy’s neck where his tiny throat was slit.

Her knees went wobbly and Dennis strengthened his grip. Her mouth was wide open but no sound came out. How could anybody do this to an innocent bunny rabbit?

She could hear Billy’s sobs growing louder and louder. Out of the corner of her eye noticed Marsha racing away from the sight, presumably to get Mrs. Cole. The matron of the orphanage was notoriously a deep sleeper and was most likely snoring her way through the commotion.

She looked around at the looks of fright and despair on the other children’s faces, until her eyes met Tom Riddle’s. He looked extremely calm and there was a glint to his eyes that unsettled her. It made him look guilty as anything, but a boy her age couldn’t have killed a rabbit like this – could he?

In the days that followed Hoppy’s death, Amy went from having mildly unpleasant dreams to full on nightmares. She would wake up, her eyes filled with tears as she struggled to stifle the scream escaping her lips. The emotions she had managed to suppress about her father’s death had came back in a flood. Even in the daytime, she couldn’t get the image of death of her father’s mangled body out of her mind. She was noticeably less chipper and withdrawn and almost all the other kids all seemed rather upset alongside her.

The only orphan who seemed to be unaffected by Hoppy’s death was Tom. While nobody could find any evidence to prove it, everybody in the orphanage knew that he was the one to kill Hoppy.

“How did he do it?” Dennis whispered to Amy two days later during playtime, searching the courtyard for the boy in question. He sagged his shoulders in relief when it was clear that Tom was across the yard, far away from them both.

“I have no idea how he could.” Amy’s voice was barely audible and she glanced nervously at Tom before looking back at Dennis. “Maybe it’s not him?”

“Who else hated Billy so much? You saw the way he looked at them both. He’s a monster!” Dennis’s voice rose and Amy hushed him. Tom merely looked their way with an amused smirk.

“How could he get the bunny up there though? There’s no way to climb up there!”

“Somebody had to. Hoppy didn’t just hop on up there and kill himself.” He said as Amy grimaced. “I told you, the kid’s a freak. One time I heard him hissing at a garter snake.” Dennis shuddered involuntarily at the thought. Amy felt the need to defend Tom in some way despite her growing suspicions of the boy. He had no parents after all, maybe he had no one here who would tell him it was weird to talk to snakes or be happy about dead bunnies. Amy swallowed, barely buying what she was telling herself.

“I don’t think snakes are all that bad,” Amy stated and Dennis scrunched his face in disgust. They would never agree about that. “And garters are harmless, aren’t they? That sounds like he was actually being normal for once and playing pretend.” Amy said but Dennis shook his head.

“It was the way he was doing it that was creepy. It was this deep unnatural sound and-” His voice cracked a little. “I swear it was like the snake understood him back.” Amy laughed in disbelief but she looked at Dennis’s face and realized he was completely serious.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She had no reason to doubt her friend, he had never lied to her before, but normal people couldn’t do stuff like that. It was like the kind magic in the fairy tales her daddy used to read to her, but the idea of magic seemed a lot scarier in the hands of somebody like Tom Riddle.

Dennis changed the subject to something more mundane. Amy could feel Tom watching them though, and she wondered how much of their conversation he overheard. He was far away from them that he shouldn’t have heard much but somehow, she felt as though Tom had heard every word.

xxx

The next few weeks life mostly got back to normal. Amy’s nightmares stopped happening every night. She still felt a little uneasy however and was unable to shake the feeling of being watched. Wherever Amy and Dennis went in the orphanage, Tom’s grey eyes were not far behind.

His eyes weren’t filled with hatred for them like they were for Billy. Instead she felt absolutely tiny, as though she was an insignificant thing that he had only just noticed and wished to squash. Dennis agreed that he was being super creepy and they did their best to avoid Tom but they still could feel him watching them no matter where they went.

Soon even that feeling faded to excitement as everybody got excited about the upcoming school trip. In just a few days they were all going to go on a trip to the seaside village of Broadstairs. At first, they had worried that they couldn’t afford the fee to go and grew more despondent as their classmates chattered on excitedly for the trip.

God must have listened to their prayers, however, as the local church by the orphanage often donated a portion of their tithe to the orphanage. Mrs. Cole gave them all enough to cover the fee and buy a small sweet at the corner store with the extra money. Amy had bought an ice lolly while Dennis got a chocolate bar; that whole afternoon they were absolutely to the brim with excitement and sugar.

All that the students could talk about was the trip. Many of the girls were excited to go in the water and take in the local sights while the boys were excited about the nearby caves. Many kids were daring each other to go deep into the caves and Amy thought it a bit silly. From what she had gathered from Marsha, who was coming as a chaperone for some of the rowdier students, the caves were impossible to get to unless you were really skilled at rock climbing. At most they were a pretty backdrop for them to look at.

To Amy, the best part of the whole trip was going to be the homemade dinner. It wasn’t like the food at the orphanage was rancid or inedible, but often she left supper feeling hungry still. The school provided dinner helped, but the food was impersonal and bland. She was a little disappointed she wouldn’t be going to one of the restaurants in the town but she knew she wouldn’t be able to afford that anyway. The plan was that all the students would go to some nearby picnic tables and eat some home cooked food prepared by some of the mums. She was excited to have food by a mum again even if they weren’t from her mummy; she couldn’t wait to eat until her stomach was round and swollen.

They left early in the morning to make it to the village with plenty of time to explore Broadstairs properly. The boys’ teacher, Miss Smith, was the supervisor for the trip today and after a long bus ride trapped with the miserable teacher Amy felt extremely bad that Dennis had to deal with her every day. It was hard to dampen the students’ enthusiasm however, even as Miss Smith droned on about their plans for the day.

They were planning to explore the shops and sights of Broadstairs until dinner, then after their meal they would enjoy the rest of the afternoon at the seaside. Once the sun started to set, they would take the coach back home. Amy wore her swimming costume underneath her clothes. It was a bit snug at the moment because she had grown since her daddy had bought it for her but she managed to squeeze into it. As she ran down the boardwalk with Dennis in tow, ignoring the teacher yelling for them to slow down, Amy thought to herself that this was going to be the best day ever.

xxx

Tom Riddle had his own plans for their afternoon. Soon after Amy and Dennis ran off to explore the nearby shops, he started to follow them. At first they thought it was coincidence, but wherever they went Tom appeared shortly afterwards. No matter how quickly they weaved through the crowds, he was their shadow. After about thirty minutes of this, they both had enough and Dennis snapped.

“Leave us alone!” He shouted at Tom, turning around so suddenly that he almost fell off the boardwalk.

“I’m simply enjoying the sights, there’s no need to yell.” Tom said with a smug look on his face. Dennis looked as if he was going to retort but Amy put her hand on his shoulder to hush him. She turned to Tom with a scowl.

“You’ve been following us all day. What do you want from us?” Amy asked as politely as she could muster, though she was unable to completely hide the annoyance in her voice that her perfect day was being interrupted by this nonsense.

“Why I was hoping we could become friends of course.”

“Friends?” Amy repeated in disbelief. While she might have wanted to befriend the mysterious Tom Riddle when she arrived at Wool’s, his actions since had crushed any desire to know him. Dennis pushed himself in front of her in a protective stance, his face turning redder then she had ever seen his face turn before.

“You murdered Hoppy! Why would we want to be friends with a killer like you?” Dennis yelled out. Amy kicked his shin, he was giving Tom the reaction he wanted from them.

“Ah, that.” Tom shrugged as if to say it was a matter of no consequence to him. “How could a small boy like me manage to get Hoppy all the way up in the rafters? It would take a feat of magic for me to do so.” Amy narrowed her eyes. She knew deep in her gut that he did it somehow, despite all logic dictating otherwise.

“We really have to get going now,” Amy said, her heart thumping. “Edith was wanting to meet up with us at the candy shop, right Dennis?” Amy said with a nervous giggle. Dennis nodded, agreeing to her story as they looked around for a way to escape this conversation. Unfortunately, they were pretty much alone; there were a couple of locals walking by but none of them seemed the type to want to interfere with what appeared to be a regular conversation.

“What’s the rush? I’m not done talking to you yet.” The threat in his voice belied his calm smile. Amy froze, this was getting really scary. Why wouldn’t he leave them alone? “I was thinking that we could search the caves together.” He waved vaguely to the east. They looked up at the caves, which had to be at least thirty feet over the ocean floor. “Wouldn’t that be an adventure? A jolly jaunt among friends?”

“You’re crazy!” Dennis yelled out. “We can’t go up there, you want us to be killed?”

“Killed?” He asked as though it was the most absurd idea he had ever heard. “No, certainly not that.” Tom’s lips twitched as though he were telling a joke neither she nor Dennis could understand. Amy tried a different approach.

“Listen Tom, let’s just go to the shops together and try to enjoy the trip,” Amy said, ignoring Dennis’s wide eyed expression at the suggestion of spending the day with Tom. “Maybe we can scrounge up some change to buy ourselves a snack?” This was absolutely the wrong thing to say. Within a second Tom had turned from calm and sure to absolutely furious. Amy inched backwards until she was up against the storefront.

“I’m not one to be content with bonbons and childish games." He pinned her to the wall, he was surprisingly strong for such a slight boy. "I’m going to be something. I am special.” Tom said before roughly letting her go. Amy was both terrified and baffled, where had this even come from?

“I wasn’t-” Amy started to stutter but she was cut off by an irate Tom. His eyes were dark with rage.

“Shut up!” Some of the townspeople turned towards them at the shout. For a brief moment, Amy hoped somebody was going to interfere with this nonsense but it wasn’t meant to be. Tom glared at them all and their concern seemed to melt away. Their eyes had a glassy sheen to them as they all walked away, clearing the area of people.

Amy couldn’t believe what she was seeing, this had to be some sort of nightmare. Nobody, especially not a kid just like them, was able to mind control people like that. Without another word, Tom grabbed them by the arm and dragged them away from the public area. His fingers dug into their skin as they were forced into a nearby alleyway.

Amy felt her stomach drop, she just knew that he was going to kill them both. There was no emotions in his eyes besides a glint of primal joy at the fact that they were under his control. A tear slipped down her cheek as she wished desperately that her daddy was here to save her right now. Would anybody even miss them if they were gone?

Suddenly there was a loud pop and Amy’s world went a terrifying black. She felt as thought she couldn’t breathe as she was crushed by an unseen force. Everything was spinning, the world a blur as everything started to fade.

xxx

“Is this what dying feels like?” Amy thought just as she slammed to the ground. The force was gone as quickly as it came. She spasmed violently on the damp cold floor, her stomach convulsing as Dennis vomited next to her.

“Pleasant trip?” Tom asked, the only one of them unaffected by the terrifying sensation. Amy got to her feet, just barely managing not to sick up her breakfast as she did so. She blinked in shock as she noticed they weren’t at Broadstairs any longer, or anywhere that was recognizable to her.

“W-where are we?” Amy stuttered as Dennis got up next to her. His face was a pale green as he leaned up against her, his body trembling. This wasn’t good, not good at all.

“Why we’re at the caves of course, just like I said we would,” Tom told them with a smile.

“But how?” Amy’s eyes were wide as she took in their surroundings. Instead of the alleyway that they were just at, they were inside one of the caves on the cliffside, the only light being from the sunlight from the opening to their left. She dragged Dennis over to the only visible means of escape, the cave's opening, but as they approached it was clear just how high up they were. They had to be at least thirty feet above the oceanside, Broadstairs now a speck in the distance.

Amy felt a wave of dizziness that had nothing to do with the height below her. Whatever this was, this insane power, was how Tom had murdered Hoppy. He had used these teleportation powers to hop up onto the rafters and slit poor Hoppy’s throat.

“Dennis?” Amy shook her friend’s shoulders but he seemed to be some sort of shock, his pale eyes unfocused and wet with unshed tears.

She looked at Tom, who looked to be enjoying their terror all too much. She didn’t think she had ever seen him so happy before, and it was at their expense. He had taken a snake out, who somehow despite its massive size had been hiding in his oversized sweater. Amy found herself angry for the first time in a long while. She really wanted to be at the boardwalk with Dennis and her friends. She was looking so forward to this trip for so long and Tom stole it from her, just like he stole Hoppy away from Billy.

“How dare you? This is absolutely insane, this isn’t the way to befriend people you…you freak!” Amy shook her head, hot tears ran down her face but she didn’t bother wiping them. Dennis trembled as he clutched Amy’s hand so hard that it hurt. “I’m telling everybody just what you’ve done to us. Y-you won’t get away with this!” Tom stared at her throughout her rant, simply raising an eyebrow when she called him a freak.

“Are you done?” Tom asked and Amy was forced to nod. “Good.” Tom was entirely unaffected by her threat, almost ignoring her as he softly hissed at the snake resting on his shoulders.

“Nobody will believe us Amy, they never listen to us kids when crazy shit happens like this,” Dennis whispered, shaking his head. She turned to Dennis; there was no sign of the fun-loving boy that she had grown to love dearly over the months. His eyes held a wariness, a darkness that made Amy know this wasn’t the first time he hadn't been believed.

“I couldn’t have said that better myself, though I would have refrained from the profanity,” Tom laughed, the soft twinkle of his voice incensing Amy.

“As if you’re so much better than us by not cussing!” Tom’s eyes darkened but Amy couldn’t help but keep going, her self preservation non-existent. “I don’t know how you’ve done all this stuff but it doesn’t change that you’re just a kid like us.”

Amy knew as soon as she had stopped talking that she had made a mistake, perhaps a fatal one. The rage she had seen earlier was back, only much more intense now they were alone. They were seeing the true monster behind Tom Riddle.

“Listen here,” Tom snarled. Amy felt as though she were to wet her pants just from the venom contained within those two words. “I am better than you and nothing, absolutely nothing, that you say will change that fact. Got it?”

“We understand!” Dennis said, his tone frantic as he urged Amy to join him. She stood there, completely frozen, as she tried to nod alongside him. All of the words she had before had vanished, replaced by absolute terror.

“I said, do you understand?” He repeated, his voice a dangerous near hiss. She could feel the danger in the air, a suffocating aura wrapping itself around them. She knew she had to agree with him, to stop acting as though she were prey, but her body wouldn’t cooperate. He sighed dramatically, putting on a false air of sadness.

“I was hoping this would be enough to get that point across, but clearly it was not.” He hissed something at the snake, looking almost fondly at the creature on his shoulders. “Believe me, after today you’ll never think of me as a mere orphan boy. Naga, it’s time.” The snake left Tom’s side, slowly approaching them as it took in the look of fear on their faces. Amy inched away slowly, while Dennis tried to step in front of the large reptile.

Rather then feeling anything for the protective gesture, Naga lunged at Dennis instead, its fangs sinking into his thigh for seconds before letting go. Dennis stumbled away with a cry, holding his now bloody leg as the snake continued on toward Amy.

Naga looked at Amy for a few long seconds, its eyes turning a ruby red, before it slithered up Amy’s body.

“No, stop it!” Dennis screamed, tripping as he tried to grab Naga’s body. With the reptilian version of a laugh, Naga wrapped itself around Amy’s neck. She clawed at the snake, pulling off a few scales as she desperately tried to clear her airway.

“Sor…” Amy tried to wheeze out but was unable to get enough air to formulate the words properly. Black splotches covered her vision. “Pl-plea-” Tom Riddle started to laugh as her body started to go limp, relishing in Dennis’s despair as he tried to pull the snake off of Amy.

She was going to die, here in this cave with Tom’s laugh as the last thing she heard. She wanted her daddy so bad, to hold her and make this stop. She could almost hear his voice, promising her it would be okay.

“Naga, stop,” Tom demanded after a few additional seconds. The snake immediately let go, going back to its master as Amy collapsed to the ground. Dennis held Amy up and she could feel his muscles trembling as he wrapped his arms around her.

“How touching,” Tom said. Amy took shaky, gasping breaths, her vision blurry with tears as she buried her head into Dennis’s shoulder.

“You can go now, I’ve made my point,” Tom stated with a shrug. Amy pulled herself away from Dennis, staring at Tom’s cold, blank eyes. It was terrifying how he could go from furious to nothing in a matter of moments. “I’m sure you can manage your way down from here.” Amy looked down and gulped as she looked at the cliffside.

“Please don’t leave us!” She begged, her voice raspy but strong. “I don’t think Dennis can make it down with his bite. W-we could slip!” Tom looked unimpressed and Amy scrambled to think of another reason why he shouldn’t leave them stranded up here. Something that would appeal to the monster before them. “And if we’re late to the picnic, people will get suspicious. Everybody else can vouch for each other’s whereabouts, but you’ve been with us the whole time.”

Tom scowled, his smile gone. They all stood there, for what was the longest few seconds of Amy’s life. Tom finally nodded and Amy felt relief wash over her, just like the water slamming against the underbelly of the cliff.

“The three of us were just spending some time together, being friends and all.” The dangerous feeling came back and Amy reached up at her neck.

“Friends…” Amy whispered, the word tasting sour on her tongue. The last thing she would ever be is friends with a freak like Tom Riddle; she never wanted to see her face again.

Amy flinched as he grabbed them, rough enough that she knew her skin would bruise in the morning. The world spun once more and they landed at the rocky shore with a dizzying pop. Amy collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

“Get a hold of yourself,” Tom sneered. “Don’t take too long getting back to town, I’ll be waiting.” With that Tom walked off, as if he hadn’t just been tormenting the two of them for who knows how long. It could have been minutes or hours. She gathered herself a little as she walked over to Dennis, wrapping her arm around his shaking frame.

xxx

By the time she managed to calm Dennis down and wash most of the blood off of his trousers, they barely had enough time to make it back for the picnic. Her stomach twisted as she sat down and she knew she wouldn’t be able to eat much if any of the delicious food spread on the blankets. Dennis wasn’t doing much better, he was twitchy and kept eyeing Tom to make sure he wouldn’t attack them again. They somehow had to act as though they had the most perfectly normal afternoon.

“Are you alright?” Marsha asked, looking concerned at her lack of enthusiasm. She couldn’t blame Marsha for her concern. Amy had been one of the most excited for the trip. She could see Tom’s eyes watching her, a bored expression on his face. Amy forced herself to nod. What could she even say? That her fellow orphan was a monster who could command snakes to do his bidding? She would be sooner locked up in an asylum then be believed by the matron.

Dennis discretely rubbed the snake bite on his thigh and Amy mentally promised to fake a headache tonight so he could get some pain relief. She forced himself to grab a sandwich and nibbled at the crust.

“What’s that on your neck?” Edith asked, spewing bits of potato salad as she spoke. Amy rubbed at her neck self consciously, it was red and bruised from where the snake strangled her.

“Dennis and I were playing a bit too rough. I’m alright though.” She gave Edith the largest false smile she could muster and it seemed to satisfy the younger girl. Marsha, who had been listening, turned to Dennis with a small frown. For a moment Amy worried that they had been found out but Marsha seemed only interesting in chiding him.

“She’s smaller and weaker then you and can’t always play as rough as you boys can,” Marsha reminded him. Dennis mumbled some nonsense in agreeance as he took a large bite of a sandwich as to not explain himself further. Amy thought this was a good idea and so despite her twisting stomach, she managed to eat her sandwich and a small bowl of potato salad. So long as she didn’t look at Tom Riddle, she could almost pretend it was a normal field trip.

She held Dennis’s hand, ignoring the giggling from the other kids. Despite everything that just happened, even through the haze of fear that still clung to her, Amy knew that she and Dennis had to stick together. Not only was he her best friend, Dennis was the only other person to understand just how dangerous Tom Riddle was.

The only thing they could do now was to wait. Soon Tom would focus on somebody else. He left Billy alone now after all. Amy could only hope that one day, she could close her eyes without his cruel laugh echoing in her ears.


End file.
